Record-Eagle Blogs - Latest Comments

Re: The USA and the Iranian Elections

CathyStripeLester — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:13:25 -0000

Bob, I have no idea how old me might live to be. It's true that dealing with him will complicate matters, largely because he doesn't trust us. But I'm hopeful that Rouhani will be able to make some progress. At least Khamenei trusts him, so they won't be at odds. If our government has a will to talk to Iran, now is the time to find a way. My main fear is that too many special interests (like Israel) just love using Iran as a bugaboo for their own agendas, and they'll make it hard for us to talk honestly.

Re: Hysteria Nation?

Bobdisqus — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 19:19:45 -0000

Hello Robert,

You have chosen "Musings of a Moderate" for your blog title but when I look at the issues you used to illustrate hysteria for your article Benghazi, and opposition to Second Amendment restrictions they seem fairly straight forward democratic partisan issues. I grant it a small sample and hope over time to be shown wrong about this as much of the rest of your post seems to be something I can find agreement with. Just as Bin Laden hoped we have been stampeded into action that far outstrips the actual damage done in the attacks. The all seeing eye of the recent Snowden disclosures, the TSA and so many other things we have inflicted upon ourselves. The cost in blood we have paid in two wars and the treasure we will be paying for them for decades to come. I think the need to crush the Taliban when they did not hand over AQ made that one necessary, but not the need to stay and try to build a nation. In hindsight, Iraq was clearly a mistake.

So please tell us what a "moderate" thinks we should do to move the nation forward.

My preferences start with developing our energy supplies starting with nuclear, and working to develop other sources as the technology makes them available. Let us fill the Lake Michigan offshore wind zone with twirling blades. Tariff for revenue and to encourage US based manufacturing. I choose a bigger brighter future for our children.
　

Thanks
Bob (who does not aspire to moderation)

Re: The USA and the Iranian Elections

Bobdisqus — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 18:21:41 -0000

CSL, can you tell us how old Ayatollah Khamenei's parents and grandparents lived to be? Rouhani seems as good as we could have hoped from the Khamenei approved but I see little reason to believe that he will shift Khamenei's mind on the nuke issues. I suspect the best we can do is to wait for his death, and to make ourselves as free of Mideast oil as possible in the interim.

Re: When a Charity is No Such Thing

CathyStripeLester — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 14:19:54 -0000

Sorry I didn't answer this earlier, but I no longer get emails telling me when there are additional comments to my blog.

I believe "Organizing for Action" should NOT get tax-exempt status.

I DO think genuine churches and religious groups should have tax-exempt status. Unfortunately so many churches have abused their privilege that there are now people saying NO charity or religious group should be exempt. It shows what happens when people take a good thing and try to turn it to political advantage. Not what Jesus intended.

Re: Hysteria Nation?

CathyStripeLester — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 14:12:31 -0000

Hi Robert, I'm glad to see a new voice in the blogs. I agree that Americans are too easily panicked by events, and that we are "following the script written by both terrorists and political manipulators." I have wondered -- do you think we recognize one-sided propaganda when we hear it? It seems to me a lot of us tend to believe the people we like, and never mind the facts.

Re: Obama’s Definitions of Children and Adults

jeff4 — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 16:53:44 -0000

universal health care? care for the poor and sick? what an inspirational message!! YES! finally some catholic church doctrine i can believe in. Good message Pope Francis!

Re: Obama’s Definitions of Children and Adults

Ed Hahnenberg — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 08:39:43 -0000

Bob...There is no doubt there are homosexuals in the clergy. I have also heard of nuns dissing prayer to pray in a cosmic mental environment. Pelagianism is the belief that original sin did not taint human nature and that mortal will is still capable of choosing good or evil without special Divine aid. I don't doubt that all of these things are present in some form at the highest levels of the Church, or at least sympathetic agreement in the minds of this or that cardinal. No excuses. However, if Pope Francis continues to call for care for the poor and marginalized, he will bring the Church and the world closer to the Christian message. He admits to not being a good manager. As long as he remains pope, though, he can call the shots on the hidden scandals inside the clergy.

Re: Obama’s Definitions of Children and Adults

Bobdisqus — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 21:00:04 -0000

http://blogs.discovermagazine....

Re: Obama’s Definitions of Children and Adults

Bobdisqus — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 20:35:39 -0000

That should be Pope's. I know there is only one even if there is a pope emeritus.

Re: Obama’s Definitions of Children and Adults

Bobdisqus — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 19:47:30 -0000

Ed any comment with respect to the popes private comments made public about Pelagianism and the pink mafia in the church?

http://www.catholicworldreport...

Re: Obama’s Definitions of Children and Adults

jeff4 — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 16:47:18 -0000

what do Penn and Teller call this?? Misdirection? answer my question please Mr. Ed! -- "I'll take your lack of a response as a white flag that you have no counter argument against my post above - the woman's body and mind CAN work together to make the best choice about when to have a child enter our world. Its her BODIE'S choice."

Re: Obama’s Definitions of Children and Adults

jeff4 — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 07:14:23 -0000

good move deflecting to this instead of answering my post.

Re: Obama’s Definitions of Children and Adults

Ed Hahnenberg — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 21:29:16 -0000

From the New York Times June 10th: "The Obama administration has decided to stop trying to block over-the-counter availability of the most popular morning-after contraceptive pill for all women and girls, a move fraught with political repercussions for President Obama.

"The reversal by the government means that any woman or girl will soon be able to walk into a drugstore and buy the pill, Plan B One-Step, without a prescription."

The prior decision by Judge Korman and this administration's caving in to it means that 5th grade girls can engage in sex with their male peers, buy a morning-after pill from any drugstore with no one the wiser, and go back to school to try to concentrate on their education as if nothing happened. This decision of the powers that be will encourage unspeakable sexual activity when such children should be enjoying their youth in innocence. There is no morality in this administration and any adult who agrees with this is morally deficient as well.

Just this weekend, the long-supportive liberal New York Times editorial board declared "This administration has lost all credibility" in reference to a host of growing scandals, especially as regards freedom of the press.

I believe nothing Obama or his surrogates say anymore. Lies, cover-ups, and power grabs are his fare. The Nixon administration was guilty of one cover-up. This administration goes well beyond that with many, many cover-ups in several areas.The best that can be said of the whole bunch surrounding Obama is that they are amoral and immoral as well. The President came to Washington to change this country. He has done so in ways we are only now beginning to understand.

Re: Obama’s Definitions of Children and Adults

jeff4 — Sat, 08 Jun 2013 07:42:43 -0000

I'll take your lack of a response as a white flag that you have no counter argument against my post above - the woman's body and mind CAN work together to make the best choice about when to have a child enter our world. Its her BODIE'S choice.

Re: When a Charity is No Such Thing

Bobdisqus — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 18:25:43 -0000

I take it that is a no then as to an example to support your analogy. Given this I think your analogy failed and your slavery comment nothing more than the feigned moral outrage I took it as to start with.

Nobody I know would ever think otherwise than that in any system there will be those that seek advantage (corruptibility of man). That is something only an ivory tower intellectual or a progressive could imagine. We have a long history of attempts at income tax reform. I see no reason to believe any future attempts will be different. The income tax is corrosive even if it were done well. We want more income not less. A clean break from the income tax would be a good thing.

Re: When a Charity is No Such Thing

Henry Klugh — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 16:19:11 -0000

It must be wonderful to have a short memory! You wrote "We managed for the first hundred years of this nation quite successfully for the most part, without an income tax." I was just pointing out some of these great successes. Sorry if that ruffles your feathers.
You claim that the way to eliminate the corrosive effect seeking tax loopholes has on government is to eliminate the income tax. No, the lobbyists will still bribe congress on other interests favorable to their clients. The income tax is just one of the many areas where government can be corrupted.

Re: When a Charity is No Such Thing

Bobdisqus — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 13:23:02 -0000

Henry your point and sputter carries little weight. I don’t defend slavery, want people to lose their money in a bank crash, or wish to turn back the 19th amendment. If you would like to establish some connection between these things and an income tax please have at it. Feigned moral outrage is not rational discussion.

My point was "what man has done, man may aspire to". If you have an example of a successful modern nation state run without money please let us know. I would say any example since Westphalia would be good enough to establish the validity of your analogy.

Re: When a Charity is No Such Thing

Henry Klugh — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 20:20:18 -0000

For its first hundred years this nation enslaved blacks, had no bank deposit insurance, no unemployment insurance, didn't allow women to vote, etc. etc....But of course we were quite successful from your point of view, which apparently doesn't see any of those issues as problems.. Incidentally, my response had a typo, it should have read, "the way to eliminate stealing IS to eliminate money. This seems quite parallel to eliminating the income tax because people and corporations abuse it

Re: When a Charity is No Such Thing

Bobdisqus — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 18:06:52 -0000

Henry

We managed for the first hundred years of this nation quite successfully for the most part without an income tax. I don’t think your analogy of ID theft and money quite holds up.

Projected FY2013 sources of federal revenue:

http://nationalpriorities.org/...

Where does the money come from, with a handy revenue by year function:

http://www.usgovernmentrevenue...

Re: When a Charity is No Such Thing

Henry Klugh — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 15:26:30 -0000

...and the way to eliminate stealing id to eliminate money!

Re: When a Charity is No Such Thing

Bobdisqus — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 13:33:22 -0000

CSL, there is nothing rational about tolerating abuse from this obtrusive government entity just because it happens to align with your own partisan goals.

You are right that the seeking of advantage in the system and the corrosive effect that has on our national government is a problem, and the way to eliminate this is to eliminate the income tax.

Re: When a Charity is No Such Thing

CathyStripeLester — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 12:28:00 -0000

Back when the income tax was put in place, our national debt went right down. The trouble is that all the rick people and the corporations immediately started working on getting themselves loopholes. If we closed all the corporate loopholes such as giant American companies registering themselves in the Cayman Islands, and if we socked the rich on a reasonably bigger part of their wealth, you'd see the national debt melt down like an ice-cream bar left out on a picnic table.

I agree completely that we should have had a war tax when we went in to Afghanistan and Iraq. Also the tariffs are not a bad idea. For one thing, it would stop China paying slave wages and then undercutting our industry. For that matter, it might deter US companies from sending jobs overseas in the first place. A lack of tariffs only benefits the money-manipulators. And I agree on the estate taxes.

Hey, how come this conversation is so rational? I was expecting all the anti-IRS ranters to jump all over me...!

Re: When a Charity is No Such Thing

Ron — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 11:02:38 -0000

Cathy, What are your thoughts on the charity called "Organizing for Action" formerly known as "Obama for America"? SInce it is blatently political, but on the liberal side rather than conservative, can we assume you are 100% in favor of it?
Statement of Purpose:Organizing for Action is a nonprofit organization established to
support President Obama in achieving enactment of the national agenda Americans
voted for on Election Day 2012.
This is a 501(c)(4) organization which still maintains the www.barackobama.com website and controls the @barackobama twitter account.

Re: Obama’s Definitions of Children and Adults

jeff4 — Mon, 03 Jun 2013 21:28:44 -0000

You have better things to do with your life? Then why do you open yourself up to these tough questions with blogging????? Tough questions require tough answers. At least say I'm right. One second the mothers body can reject the holy fertilized egg and the next second her mind can't or it's the holocaust.

Re: Obama’s Definitions of Children and Adults

jeff4 — Mon, 03 Jun 2013 20:55:05 -0000

when the going get's tough, Ed gets going. No last word by me, just your deafening silence again.